


The enemy of my friend is my friend (or something like that)

by Lenna



Series: The one where Kim thinks she's stepped into the Twilight zone [2]
Category: Power Rangers (2017), trimberly - Fandom
Genre: F/F, aka The one where Amanda is not an asshole, trimberly - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-08-16
Updated: 2017-08-16
Packaged: 2018-12-16 07:14:48
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,308
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11823792
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lenna/pseuds/Lenna
Summary: Sometimes, Trini misses the days when she was still invisible at school, when she didn’t have any friends and people simply ignored her. It’s not like Trini doesn’t love her little team of misfits, she’s just not used to all the attention that being friends with the two biggest pariahs at school has brought to her life.Also known as How Trini finds herlsef becoming Amanda's gay counselor, while Kimberly thinks she's going crazy.





	The enemy of my friend is my friend (or something like that)

**Author's Note:**

> THIS IS IMPORTANT!  
> This story is a companion piece for **You make my whole world feel so right when it’s wrong** and you MUST read that one before this. This is Trini's pov of the story, a way to explain those missing moments in the previous one, so a lot of things won't make sense if you read this one before the other. I've warned you!
> 
> Also, as always, no beta=probably a ton of mistakes.  
> And if you want to leave a comment or kuddos, it will be greatly appreciated.

Sometimes, Trini misses the days when she was still invisible at school, when she didn’t have any friends and people simply ignored her. It’s not like Trini doesn’t love her little team of misfits, she’s just not used to all the attention that being friends with the two biggest pariahs at school has brought to her life.

For example, she had been able to avoid being a bull’s-eye for the cheerleader squad and their insults for a whole year, which might be some kind of record, until the day she stepped into the school with Kimberly Hart by her side, becoming an easy target.

Or so they thought.

Trini is used to bullies, she had to face a few of them back in the day when she still cared about what people would think of her, when she was always the new girl trying to fit. And honestly, the bullies at Angel Grove are quite lame compared to some of her previous tormentors. The insults? Unoriginal and boring. Defaced locker’s doors? Just rip them off. Being called a dyke in front of everyone? Trini has heard that word thrown at her so many times by now that it’s more annoying than hurtful.

With time, she had mastered three easy steps: Breathe, smile, and leave. There’s nothing that enrages bullies more than someone who completely ignores them.

That’s why she doesn’t understand why she snapped at Amanda like that.

Maybe she was fed up with the way the cheerleader was talking about Kimberly, about her betrayal and how she would do the same to Trini in no time. Or maybe it was the tone in her voice when she spoke about how everyone at school was catching up with how _special_ their friendship was, but that Kim would run away from her the moment Trini tried to do something, because she wasn’t a _dyke like her._

Maybe it was feeling Kim getting angrier with every word leaving Amanda’s mouth what did it.

In the end, Trini had broken her own rule and engaged in the fight, taking the tiniest hint of a weakness from Amanda’s own words and turning it against her.

What she didn’t expect was to be right.

Now she has to deal with the consequences, which includes a pissed off Kimberly Hart staring at her across the table.

Trini knows that her friend is hurt because she’s refusing to tell her what happened with Amanda at school. Even after Trini reassured her that no one could ever change how she feels about Kim, she still can sense her friend’s hesitation, how insecure and small she felt in that moment, afraid that Amanda could have said something to the other girl that would change their relationship.

Little does Kim know that Trini’s feelings for her are too strong to let any bully get between them.

Is funny, and sometimes kind of painful, how oblivious Kimberly is.

Okay, it’s not like Trini is parading around with a gigantic sign that says ‘I LOVE KIMBERLY HART’, but she isn’t that subtle either. 

Since she realized that her feelings towards Kimberly were starting to change, Trini has gone through different stages of emotions. First, she was just attracted to the Head Cheerleader, nothing more, and nothing unusual given the uniform and how beautiful the girl was. Even if she was a bitch at the time. Those were easy times. Kim didn’t even know she existed, and she could just admire her from afar. After all, it was just another stupid crush on the straight, popular girl at her new school. She had been through that already. She had been burnt. She had learnt her lesson. And, even if Kim turned out to be a nice person under that uniform, Trini had decided a long time ago that meeting people, making friends, or trying to have the slightest relationship with someone, was not worth the effort if she was going to leave them behind in the end. So, she would just spend her days seating at the back of the classroom, waiting for the day when Kimberly Hart wouldn’t be more than another faceless body in the crowd.

Oh, boy, how wrong she had been.

In her defence, Trini couldn’t have known that an ancient, alien power was going to choose her to become a superhero, and let alone that one of her newfound team members would be her crush, who had recently fallen from grace.

At the time, Trini’s life was already complicated enough, so being hit by a train and waking up to discover that she had inhuman abilities had been the final straw. No one could blame her for running away, or for leaping over a ravine, for that matter.

But Kimberly Ann Hart is stubborn as a mule, apparently has zero sense of self-preservation, and is incapable of thinking it twice before throwing people off a cliff.

Before she could do something about it, Trini’s stupid crush had gone the size of Jason’s T-rex, and was dangerously becoming something else.

And Trini hated herself for being so weak.

She was just starting to get comfortable in her skin, in her armour _._ After saying out loud for the first time everything that was on her mind, she had finally accepted that part of herself that had been hiding behind a wall of indifference and sarcasm. She was starting to feel _free._

The last thing she needed was to fall for one of her _straight_ best friends.

It was stupid, and cliché, and completely unacceptable.

Until it wasn’t.

Until she realized that the mixture of feelings that had been bundling together at the back of her mind wasn’t hers, but a consequence of the bond she shared with the others. Once she learnt to tell them apart, Trini could hear Zack’s laugh and still feel his sadness, or watch Jason giving a speech and see his self-doubt behind their leader’s façade. She even could tell when Billy was working on a project or watching a movie with his mom. But above everything else, Trini could _feel_ Kim. From the freedom she felt jumping into the water at the pond, to the self-hatred invading her every time Amanda Clark crossed her path. But she could feel her want, too, the joy she felt every time her eyes met Trini’s, the electricity every time they touched, and the heat pooling up at the pit of her stomach whenever Trini decided to strip off her shirt and just train in her sports bra.

The Yellow Ranger had tested that one a few times just to be sure.

So, in the end, the problem isn’t that Kim hasn’t realized how Trini feels about her, no. The real problem is that she’s completely oblivious to her own feelings. The girl hasn’t even caught up yet on what Trini said to her after her little run-in with Amanda at school, for God sake.

“Hey, are you going to finish that?” Zack asks her, reaching for the last bit of her donut.

Even if she has been focused on Kimberly the whole time, Trini sees the hand before hearing the words, and with catlike reflexes, stops Zack an inch away from her food.

“Yes,” She growls at him, “I am going to finish _my_ donut. Go get your own food.”

“I bet you’d give it to Kim if she asked.” He says, leaning back on his chair and crossing his arms, pouting.

“Of course I would,” Trini deadpans, “She’s prettier than you.”

“That’s not fair.”

“That’s life. Get used to it.”

“I’m prettier than Kim,” He mutters in his chair.

“Mhm,” Trini pokes the last piece of the pastry with the fork, and brings it slowly towards her mouth. She looks at Kim then, and smirks, “You’re just not my type, Taylor.”

Kimberly just laughs and smiles back at her, amused with her friend’s antics, but still not catching up with all the clues that Trini has been throwing at her.

She doesn’t want to resort to drastic measures, like telling Kim to open her damn eyes and proceed to kiss her silly until she finally understands, but Trini is reaching a breaking point.

Luckily for her, Kimberly isn’t completely hopeless, and that same night she seems to realize what Trini had been trying to say at school.

But she’s not so desperate as to give up now and confess her feelings for Kim through a text. No. She’ll give the other girl time to think about it, to come to terms with her own feelings, and then she’ll wait for the perfect moment.

 

+++

 

When she gives a lame excuse to her Math’s teacher and runs towards the bathroom, the last person she expects to find there is Amanda Clark.

In fact, she was actually looking for Kimberly, who right now is seriously freaking out. Trini can feel her there, hiding inside one of the stalls, probably waiting for the cheerleader to leave.

She hesitates before saying ‘hey’, Amanda replies with a short ‘hi’, and after twenty seconds of weird and uncomfortable silence, Trini gestures towards one of the stalls. She doesn’t really need to use it, but she’s giving the other girl enough time to leave without having to say another word to each other.

But it seems that Amanda had other plans, because when Trini flushes the toilet and leaves the stall, the girl is still there, waiting.

“I’ve been thinking,” She says, wrapping her arms around herself and looking like a scared child, “About what you said yesterday.”

She still feels bad about that, but she didn’t expect to have done such a number on the cheerleader that she would want to mention it again.

“I’m sorry about that. I shouldn’t have implied something so serious in front of everyone.”

In that moment, Trini can literally feel Kim screaming, upset and confused, inside her head, but there’s nothing she can do until Amanda leaves.

“It’s okay. It’s not like I was being nice, either.”

“Are you even capable of that?” She’s not trying to be rude, but this is probably the first time that she sees the girl addressing someone, besides her friends, in a nice, civilised way.

“If the occasion arises,” Amanda makes a pause and then continues, “Listen, could we maybe talk? Like, outside school?”

Trini _definitely_ wasn’t expecting that.

But the cheerleader is looking at her with anxiety, and maybe some hope in her eyes, and Trini can’t help but compromise on some coffee and her two ears. After all, everyone deserves to be heard without judging, and a second chance to make things right. Maybe this way she’ll be able to help Kim close that chapter of her life, to move forward.

The moment the door closes behind Amanda, Trini knows that it’s time for another awkward conversation with Kimberly.

“You can come out now, Princess.”

 

+++

 

Trini’s whole body is still buzzing when she enters the café at Lorne Street.

Kimberly is finally aware of what’s really going on between them, she’s embracing it, and with much less drama that she would have expected, to be honest. They’ve even would have kissed if Trini wasn’t so adamant on waiting for the perfect moment.

She refuses to let their first kiss happen in a school’s bathroom. She’s got more style than that.

The thing is…, everything is on the open now. Trini has made clear that she wants to have something more with Kimberly, something beyond friendship, and Kim’s mind has been set on one thing only since then; Trini’s lips and the fact that she hasn’t kissed them yet. And that in particular has the Yellow Ranger on the edge, because she hasn’t only been dealing with her own sexual frustration for months, but Kim’s as well, even if her friend hadn’t realized until the previous night _why_ she was frustrated in the first place.

So, saying no to Kim had been hard, and now she’s sitting in front of Amanda, about to have a serious conversation, and she can only focus on how on fire her body is at the moment.

“I honestly didn’t think that you would show up.”

“I’m not that rude.” She snorts, then she leaves her mug on the table, takes off her jacket and sits opposite to the other girl.

“Well, you definitely send that vibe.”

“That’s because most people annoy me and I want to get rid of them.”

“Then why did you accept meeting me here? Because I doubt I’m part of the selected group of people that you tolerate.”

Trini takes a sip of her coffee, finding it a lot better that the one at Krispy Kreme, and taking a mental note to tell Kimberly later.

“Hm, I told you. I felt bad about yesterday,” She explains, “You pissed me off, but I shouldn’t have said what I said.”

“I still can’t believe you saw through me like that.”

“Honestly? I wasn’t expecting to be right. Did the others catch up?”

“Not really. They asked me why I let you go like that, but nothing else. The only one who’s been questioning what happened is Harper, but I’ve been trying to avoid having _that_ conversation with her. I don’t really know if I could trust her with something like that.”

“Some friends you have.”

Amanda frowns at that, and Trini knows that she’s just touched a sore spot.

“My best friend exposed me to the whole school. You can’t blame me for having trust issues.”

“That’s fair.”

She almost feels sorry for Amanda. Trini doesn’t know how it is to be popular and have tons of friends at school, going to parties, or being feared and respected by those who aren’t lucky enough to be on the top, but she knows how it feels to be alone. And she can see in the cheerleader’s eyes that she knows, too.

But, of course, Amanda has to ruin the moment.

“I don’t even know how you can be friends with her.”

And Trini snaps at that.

“If you are going to start badmouthing Kimberly, I’ll be out of here before you can blink.”

“I’m just saying that you seem like a nice person. She doesn’t deserve someone like you sticking up for her.”

“First, I’ll be the one to decide who does or doesn’t deserve me. And second, I’m not perfect. I’ve done my share of shitty things, so stop asuming things when you don’t even fucking know me.”

Amanda,  dumbfounded at the girl’s harsh reply, doesn’t say anything back, and Trini stands up from her chair, because she’s clearly wasting her time being here.

“I don’t even know why I’ve tried...” She mumbles while putting on her jacket.

“Wait, Trini...” Amanda finally reacts, also standing up and reaching to briefly touch the shorter girl’s hand,“I’m sorry,” She says, sounding a bit desperate, “Don’t go, please.”

“Then give me a damn good reason.”

The cheerleader retracts her hand and slumps on her chair before speaking again.

“I think I’m bisexual.” She says, and her voice is insecure, barely audible. At that, Trini sits again, still with her jacket on, and gestures the girl to continue, “And you were right yesterday, when you questioned why I sent Kim that picture.”

“Is this the first time you said that out loud?”

“Yeah.” Amanda takes a deep breath, “And I’m fucking terrified.”

“You understand how fucked up this is, right? After the way you treated me?”

“Can I allege gay panic as an excuse?” Amanda raises her head a little, and finds Trini’s questioning eyes.

“Can Harper and the others?”

“I don’t think so.” The cheerleader giggles out of nervousness.

“Then you can’t.” The ranger sighs, “Just accept that you are just another sheep in the high school’s flock, too scared to be different from them. I’m not going to judge you for wanting to be _normal,”_ She says with a hint of sadness in her voice, “I know how difficult it is to be the weird kid at school.”

“How do you do it?”

“What? Deal with people like you?”

Amanda just nods.

“After a while, you get used to it.”

“Yeah?”

“Well, not really,” Trini shrugs, “But you learn to ignore those assholes, and try to not let them see how it affects you.” She sees the girl nervously fidgeting with the coffee mug in her hands, and knows that she has to reassure her somehow, “Look,you’re always going to find someone who still thinks this is the eighteenth century, and that we all gays should burn in hell. The important thing here is that _you_ don’t believe it. _And,”_ She continues, “You’ve got an advantage here.”

“I do?”

“You are the Queen Bee right now.” Trini explains, “You know how their minds work. Use it.”

“Are you saying that I should come out and make it look like the new cool trend?” Amanda raises an eyebrow, obviously amused at what the other girl just suggested.

Trini can’t help but snort at that.

“That is totally your choice,” She replies, “But, maybe, try something small first. You’re not even sure if you _are_ bisexual.”

“How can I be sure?”

“I don’t know, Amanda. I’m not your fucking gay Yoda.”

“Are you sure?” The cheerleader giggles again, and this time it looks like she’s more at ease and having fun, “Because you are wise _and_ tiny.”

“I’m going to kill you.” Trini states with a murderous look in her face.

“You and what munchkin army?

“I’ll kill you with my bare hands. In your sleep.”

Who the hell does she think she is? Not even her friends are allowed to make fun of her height.

“Will you help me?” Amanda asks out of nowhere.

That takes Trini completely by surprise because _what the fuck is she talking about right now?_

“What?” The ranger asks, confused.

“To know for sure,” Amanda continues, “If I’m... _you know.”_

“I’m still a mess myself. How the hell do you expect me to help you?”

“I don’t know,” She hesitates, “How did you know that you were into girls?”

“In a party, another girl and I took a dare a bit too seriously.” Trini doesn’t understand why, but the words leave her mouth so quickly that she’s almost embarrassed, so she brings the mug to her lips to take a long sip of the already lukewarm beverage.

“So, I could try that.”

“What? Kissing a girl to see if you like it?”

“Yeah. Are you in?”

Trini almost chokes on her coffee.

“Are you insane?!” Nervously, she puts the mug on the table, and reaches for a napkin to clean the few drops of coffee that have landed on her shirt.

“Why? You are very attractive, and you have really nice lips.”

Trini is pretty sure that her face is turning into a deep shade of red.

“Stop. I’m not going to kiss you,” Then she mutters to herself, “God, this is wrong in so many levels…”

“It is because of Kim?”

“What?!

“I mean, it would be like kissing the enemy, right?”

“Listen, this isn’t about Kim, okay? I just I have this strong policy against kissing cheerleaders. It’s nothing personal.” And that is not a total lie, but Trini isn’t going to say _‘hey, maybe Kim has something to do with it, but not in the way you think.’_

“Bad experience?” Amanda keeps pushing.

“We are not talking about that. This is about you, not me.”

“Oh, okay.” But Trini knows that Amanda isn’t done with the matter. She can see the question coming before the girl can even say the words, “But would you do it if I wasn’t a cheerleader? Kiss me, I mean.”

And Trini just groans because this conversation is getting too personal, too fast.

“I guess,” She mumbles, “We’ll never know.”

“That’s too bad.”

“Could you maybe stop flirting with me? It’s disturbing.”

“Disturbing?” She can hear the amusement on the cheerleader’s voice, and she doesn’t like it a bit. Amanda is getting too comfortable with her, and that could led to a lot of trouble, “I think is quite fun. Now I understand why Kim is so smitten with you.”

“Why don’t you go find some other girl to flirt with? That could actually help with your situation,” Trini suggests, “Has anyone caught your attention?”

“Not since...,” Amanda frowns, and she doesn’t need to finish the sentence for Trini to know who she’s talking about, “And at school is difficult to find someone who would take me seriously or wouldn’t judge me.”

“Yeah, trying this with someone from school can backfire pretty fast.” She sees Amanda sigh and look a bit defeated, so Trini makes a decision, “We’ll find a way.”

Suddenly, there’s a new spark in the cheerleader’s eyes.

“We?” She asks hopefully, “Are you accepting to be my gay Yoda, then?”

Trini just takes her coffee again, leans on her chair, and takes a long sip before answering.

“Just don’t call me gay Yoda ever again.”

+++

 

Since their conversation at the bathroom, where they both made clear that whatever was between them was more than friendship, the girls haven’t been able to get more than ten minutes alone.

It was painful.

One thing was not wanting to rush, to help Kim get to a more healthy, happier place before letting anything happen, and another completely different not being able to see the girl beyond school and training.

And going to Kimberly’s at night was out of question for reasons _._ Important reasons. Hormonal and difficult to control _reasons._

So, the Universe is probably working against Trini today, because she’s been busy at home all morning and then, somehow, June guilted her into a mother-daughter afternoon at a beauty salon, while her dad took the twins to buy new equipment for their baseball practice, before they all meet for a celebratory family dinner, later at night.

Well, it’s not like a girl doesn’t enjoy a mani-pedi from time to time.

What Trini doesn’t enjoy, though, is her mother unstopping questioning about her life.

Her relationship with June isn’t exactly how it was before she became a Power Ranger. The whole almost dying, _twice_ , the expression of pure relief in her parent’s faces when she returned home after the battle, all battered and tired but alive, and the way her mother hugged her for hours after that, even when Trini reassured her again and again that she was okay, had made her seen June’s concern and constant inquiries about her life with other eyes. Not that she was going to tell her mom about every little thing in her life, but a few details from time to time wouldn’t hurt anyone. Things like her grades, if she was nervous about a paper, a new movie that she saw and thought that her parents would like… She even mentioned her friends a couple of times, but her mother had been skeptical about it, until they ran into Jason and Billy one day at the grocery store, and Trini had introduced them. Her mom’s face had been precious.

She’s also mentioned Kim’s name on a few occasions, but it seems that June still hasn’t caught up on that.

“I’m so glad they offered that position to your father. I was tired of having to move every time I was getting used to a new place.”

“Yeah.” Trini answers simply.

She’s been happy, almost ecstatic, the moment her father announced during lunch that he’s been offered to be the new Director of Operations of the company. That means they won’t have to move again, at least for a while, and Trini won’t need to find an excuse to stay behind.

“You like it here, right?” June asks, hesitantly, “I mean, you even made friends.”

“I guess there’s worse places than Angel Grove.” She tries to reply nonchalantly, while staring at her now perfect nails.

“How worse?”

Trini knows what her mother is asking about. They’ve never discussed things like the bullying at school, or the fact that she’d started questioning her sexuality while living at one of the most homophobic states of the whole country, mostly because Trini never wanted to talk about it, but that doesn’t mean it hasn’t been a giant pink elephant in the room for a while. Maybe now that Trini has caved a little with her attitude, and that June has reduced her efforts to make her dress more feminine and turn her into a social butterfly, or a _señorita,_ how her abuela would say, she’s getting a bit more comfortable with the thought of easing her mom into the idea of her daughter dating another girl.

She’s about to tell something, when a voice calls her name from the door of the salon.

“Trini?”

“Who’s that, mija?” June, sitting at the chair besides her daughter, is staring with curiosity at the tall, blonde girl walking towards them.

“Just a schoolmate.” She answers in an attempt to avoid further questioning.

But Amanda seems to like making things difficult for her.

“Hey,” Says the cheerleader once she’s in front of them.

“Hi,” Trini’s greeting isn’t friendly at all, but her mom’s face seems to light up at the prospect of meeting another of her daughter’s friends.

“This is like the last place I would expect to find you,” Amanda states while grinning at her.

“Yeah, well, it isn’t exactly my favorite pastime, but mom insisted that we needed bonding time.”

“Trini,” Her mother interrupts, “Is this that Kim girl you always talk about?”

Amanda laughs slightly at that.

“Definitely not,” She says extending her hand towards June, “Amanda Clark. Trini is helping me with…”

“Math!” Trini exclaims before the other girl can say anything else. Amanda seems to understand and makes an almost imperceptible gesture to let her know, “I’m helping her with Math.”

“Yes, I’m really bad with numbers,” The girl says following Trini’s lead with astonishing ease, “And with all the time the squad takes it’s a little difficult to take extra classes, so your daughter offered to help.”

“The squad?” June asks with wonder, “Are you a cheerleader?”

“Head Cheerleader, actually.”

 _Fucking great._ Trini thinks. _Now mom won’t shut up about this for months…_

“That is wonderful,” Then June turns towards her daughter, “Why didn’t you tell me you were tutoring someone?”

“Because it’s not a big deal,” She groans in response.

“By the way,” Amanda addresses Trini again, handing the girl her phone, “Could I have your number? I wanted to ask you yesterday but I completely forgot.”

“You want my number?”

“Yes. You know, in case I have a trouble with _Math_ when we’re not at school?”

Trini takes Amanda’s cell-phone and types her number, thinking how surreal the whole situation is becoming. She only hopes that this won’t come back to bite her in the ass

On their way home after dinner, she has to suffer her mother’s constant blubbering to her father about how nice Amanda was, how great it is that Trini offered to help, and how their daughter could use this opportunity to be more social and make more friends.

Trini decides that is better to stay quiet and let her mother be happy for once.

Later, when her family is already sleeping, she sneaks out of her window and climbs into the house’s roof. Trini used to do her nightly routine before going to bed in her bedroom, but since becoming a Power Ranger, she easily exchanged the views of her room’s ceiling for the vast black sky over Angel Grove.

She sits with her legs crossed, staring at the silent neighborhood for a couple of seconds before closing her eyes and taking a deep breath. Before discovering the Ranger Bond, Trini used to spend half an hour every night to just breathe and relax, to forget about anything that happened during the day, good or bad, before going to sleep. Although, sometimes it wasn’t enough to avoid the nightmares. But since realizing that she could feel the other’s emotions, Trini has added checking on her friends to that routine.

Today, Trini smiles when she feels that Billy is already sleeping peacefully, and frowns when a sudden urge to dance invades her. _What the hell is Jason doing?_

She feels impotent when Zack’s despair fills all her nerves, and it makes her want to cry because there’s nothing else she can do, besides being there for him whenever he needs a shoulder to rest.

And then, it’s Kim’s turn.

Trini doesn’t know if she should laugh or be worried, because no human should be able to feel so many feelings at once.

Kimberly is nervous, anxious, hopeful, happy, _and_ extremely excited, not to mention, also a little bit horny. And Trini understands her, really, because that’s exactly how she felt the moment she realized that Kim might return her feelings. But, as she managed to calm down and think of an action plan, deciding to do things one tortuous step at a time, she can see how that won’t work with the other girl. Kim is too hot-headed, and is probably about to jump from her window, and even if there’s a big part of Trini that wants to let Kimberly come to her house and sweep her off her feet with a searing kiss, she’s already too committed to her plan.

“Special,” She mutters, “It will be special. You just have to hold on a little longer.

But Trini knows she must do something to placate Kim’s anxiety, at least for tonight, so she reaches for her phone to send her a quick text.

She can’t wait for breakfast.

 

+++

 

**I think I can still feel the knives**

**on my back from earlier.**

Trini stares at the new message she just got. It’s from an unknown number and weirdly cryptic, although she kind of has an idea of whom might be.

 **Who’s this?** She sends.

 **God, you’re dense.**     

                   

**It’s Amanda.**

 

**Btw, was that the Green Eyed**

**Monster at the KK, or was Kim**

**doing a great imitation of it?**

 

“Seriously?” Trini grunts.

**Is this an emergency?**

 

**Maybe.**

 

**I don’t think Harper bought the**

**tutoring excuse.**

 

**Not completely, at least.**

 

**Are you really in AP Math?**

**And AP Chemistry.**

**Damn.**

**Think u could tutor me in Chem? For real?**

**Mrs. Harris is being a pain in the ass this semester.**

 

**No.**

**Why?**

 

**I don’t want to.**

**You’re mean.**

 

**Thank you.**

**I won’t stop flirting with u until you say yes.**

 

**I’ll deal with it.**

**I’ll start doing it at school and my fall**

**from grace will be your fault.**

 

If Amanda wants to play hard, she really doesn’t know who she’s talking to.

 

**It’s your coming out, girl.**

 

**They already think I’m gay, so**

 

**I got nothing to lose.**

 

**…**

**For the record, this is u forcing**

**me to be mean…**

 

**I’m going to kiss you.**

 

**And when I do, I’ll make sure Kim is**

**there watching every second of it.**

 

“Fucking bitch.”

Trini is ninety-nine percent sure that Amanda is bluffing, but it’s that tiny one percent what makes her want to throw her phone against the nearest wall and smash it to pieces. She chooses the safer option, and throws it on her bed, leaving Amanda’s text unanswered.

 

+++

 

She really understands what Kim means, when she says that this is the perfect romantic spot for their first kiss, but that's not on Trini's plans for today. They are here to help Kimberly get in touch with the bond, not to make out, and the Yellow Ranger takes seriously her role as a teacher.

 _And_ Trini may has something in mind that she wants to try the moment Kim learns to control the bond.

She breathes relieved when her mother interrupts them, because it was starting to be difficult to control the urges to kiss the other girl. What she really doesn't welcome is Amanda's text. It's not the first one that Trini gets since she left the girl hanging yesterday, after getting angry at her for making fun of something so delicate as her relationship with Kim, but this is the first time she's asking Trini to forgive her.

While they're on their way towards Kim's house, she notices the phone vibrating inside her pocket with two more messages, and wonders if they're also from Amanda, but Kimberly is holding her hand, and she looks so carefree, so happy, that nothing in this world would make Trini let go, much less any message from the cheerleader.

Kim has been incredibly understanding about this thing with her ex-best friend, or maybe she's been too distracted with the changes in her relationship with Trini, focusing all her attention on that, that she barely gives a second thought to anything else. But she would probably start caring about it if Trini started texting Amanda while she's with her.

They reach Kim’s house and the phone is still forgotten in her pocket.

 

+++

 

"I can't believe that we have the house to ourselves and you still won't kiss me," Kimberly states with her eyes glued to the TV.

"Is that all you think about?

They are watching a movie, although doesn't seem like any of them is paying attention to whatever is happening on the screen. Trini is sitting on the couch, with her legs folded and her back resting comfortable against a couple of pillows, while Kim is laying with her head on Trini's lap, which gives the Yellow Ranger the perfect angle to let her hand play absently with the other girl's hair.

"It's all I'm going to think about until you do it," She replies, suddenly turning her body to look at Trini, and completely forgetting about the movie, "Are you sure I can't change your mind?"

And Trini is about to say no, but suddenly an adventurous hand is getting under her shirt, gently touching the girl’s smooth skin, and making any rational thought fly from her mind.

“Whoa,” Kim mutters. Then she takes a deep breath, and making a bold move, slides her hand a little bit higher, “I… Oh God, that’s…”

“Intense,” Trini tries to breathe, “Too intense.”

“This is what you felt when I…?”

“Not this strong.”

“Did you know? That it… that it would be like this?”

“I had an inkling,” Trini answers, trying to ease the wild beating of her heart, “Now t-that you know how..,” she takes a deep breath, “…how to feel me inside the bond, if we don’t control it, it’s like an exponential progression. It’ll grow stronger because we aren’t feeling only what the other feels, but also our own feelings from an outer perspective.”

“But you can control it, right?”

“Kim… you are touching me,” Trini says, “I don’t thing I even remember my own name right now.”

Kimberly giggles at that.

“This is why you won’t kiss me? Because our heads would explode?”

“It’s a factor, but not the main reason.” She takes a deep breath.

“You’re calming down.”

“I’m trying to control myself,” She explains, “To not encourage you further.”

“That is a lot of self-control,” If Trini could focus on anything else but Kimberly’s hand, she would notice the amusement mixed with frustration that the other girl is feeling, “So, you remember your full name now?”

“Yes.”

“And?”

“And what?”

“Won’t you tell me?”

“Tell you what?”

“Stop acting like I’m stupid, you asshole,” Kim complains, using the hand still under Trini’s shirt to poke the girl in the ribs, “Tell me your middle name.”

“But you already know it.” Trini states.

“No, I don’t.”

“Yes, you do,” The Yellow Ranger giggles at the absurdity of the moment and the way Kimberly pouts at her, “Trinidad is my middle name.”

Kimberly, dumbfounded, gets up from the other girl’s lap and sits facing her.

“I feel cheated,” She says, and Trini can’t help but laugh at her offended expression.

“My first name is more like a family tradition,” She explains, “My great-grandmother, my grandma, my mom, and me, we all have the same first name, and even some cousins do. Imagine the confusion at a party with the whole family if everyone answered to Maria.”

“So, your full name is Maria Trinidad?”

“Yes.”

“It’s a nice name.”

The moment is dangerous. Kim is now at her level, staring straight into her eyes, and closer than what could be considered safe. If she slips, if she lets Kim kiss her right now, the world wouldn’t end, it would probably be amazing, and they would be happy, but Trini knows that she would forget about her plans, that she would lose her focus on the bigger goal, and that everything she’s been trying to achieve this past days with Amanda would turn to ashes, if it wasn’t already.

“Your leg is buzzing.” Kim says, interrupting her inner thoughts.

“What?”

“Your phone,” She explains, touching it through the fabric of Trini’s jeans, “Someone really wants to talk to you.”

“Ugh, that’s probably my mom again.”

“Take it, or she’ll think I’ve kidnapped you.”

But when she maneuvers to take the phone out of her pocket without having to get up from the couch, and finally looks at the screen, the name she finds there is not her mom’s.

She’s about to hang up when Kim stops her.

“It’s okay. You can answer.”

Kimberly gives her a last reassuring nod before getting up and going towards the kitchen. Trini lets go a deep sigh before answering.

“You sure are persistent.”

“ _I was about to give up.”_

“I’m with Kim right now.”

_“Oh, sorry, we can talk tomorrow if you want.”_

“It’s okay, she knows I’m talking to you. What do you want?”

“ _I…,”_ Amanda hesitates, “ _I wanted to say sorry. I didn’t want to offend you. I would really like if you could tutor me, but I’m not going to force you.”_

“If you ever threaten me again with hurting Kim like that, I’ll make your life a living hell.”

_“I think I’ve underestimated your relationship with her. I know I’ve joked about it before but, there’s something more, right? You wouldn’t have freaked out like that if this was just about Kim feeling betrayed by a friend.”_

“We are working on that.”

There’s a few seconds of silence at the other end of the line, before Amanda speaks again.

“ _So…, you opened her eyes, huh? I don’t know if I should be jealous or outraged that you succeeded where I couldn’t.”_

“Your approach was too vague. I’ve come to learn that you usually need neon signs with Kim.”

“Are your making fun of me in my own house?”

Kim is leaning against the doorframe, with her arms crossed and staring at her with a frowned face.

“I’m simply stating the obvious.” Trini replies, and then a thought cross her mind, “Hey, Amanda, I’m going to put you on hold for a second, okay? Stay on the line.”

“ _Sure.”_

Trini proceeds to put the microphone on mute, before asking Kim something that’s been on her mind since they were at the mountain.

“Kim, were you serious before, when you said that you’d try talking to her?”

“Yes,” Kimberly replies a bit puzzled, “But you know that this has to be a two way street, right? It’s not just my decision.”

“Leave that to me,” Then Trini turns back her attention to the phone, unmuting the call, “Hey, I’m back.”

“ _That was fast. Did you calm the beast with a kiss?”_ She hears Amanda giggling at the other side of the line.

“Shut up. Do you want to make amends for what happened yesterday?”

“ _I already said I’m sorry. What more do you want?”_

“Let’s make a deal, and _maybe_ you’ll have a Chemistry tutor after all.”

 

+++

 

The sun is starting to set behind the mountain, but neither girl seems to want to leave yet.

They’ve been kissing for a while, and at some moment, hands have started to move on their own, boldly heading to places where they’ve been hesitant before. But Trini needs to stop for a second, breathe and get her emotions under control, because as nice as it is feeling Kim against her, seeing her so carefree and happy, this is getting out of hand too fast and Kimberly doesn’t seem to remember that they’re still at the woods.

“Kim,” She moans almost out of breath when the other girl moves her lips to Trini’s neck, “Kim, we need t-to stop.”

“It doesn’t feel like you want to stop.” Kimberly replies with her lips still attached to her skin.

“Babe,” She feels the other girl’s smile against her neck at the endearment, “It’s not that I want to stop, but if we don’t, we’ll end up sleeping here. There’s too much pent up sexual frustration between the two of us, and we have enough stamina to keep us going for days.”

“That could be fun.” Kim goes back to paying attention to her lips.

“Maybe,” She says between a light bite on her lower lip and Kimberly’s soothing tongue, “But not in the woods.”

“I hate your self-control.”

 “Well, you should learn some,” She says, laughing at the beautiful, pouting girl in her arms.

 

+++

 

“So, Mrs. Harris just told us we have a test next week. Are you going to help me?”

Three of the five Rangers stare at the newcomer like they’ve just seen a ghost.

“Kim, why is your arch nemesis sitting in our table and talking to Trini?” Zack questions, while the other two boys simply stare in silence at the cheerleader.

“Don’t ask me,” She replies, “My girlfriend is the one who decided to befriend the enemy.”

“Must I remind you that I’m here and I can hear you?” Amanda says with her usual patronizing tone, before turning her attention back to Trini, who just rolls her eyes, “By the way, thanks for what you did at the café yesterday.”

“It went well last night with Sam?” Trini asks surprised that Amanda didn’t get angry with her for meddling with her dating life.

“Wonderful.” The cheerleader answers with a smile.

“So…, did you test your theory?”

“Thoroughly.”

“And judging for that smirk on your face, I guess you’re happy with the results.”

“Delighted.”

“I think I’m lost,” Kimberly says, “Who’s Sam and what did you test?”

“Sam is the cute barista you were jealous of.” The cheerleader answers. Her smirk growing bigger.

“The one at the Krispy Kreme?”

“Yes,” This time is Trini who replies, and she has to contain herself to not burst laughing at the way Kim’s eyes widely open.

“You got her number… for Amanda?”

A simultaneous, and very loud _what?!_ coming from the three boys at the table cause an awkward silence in the whole cafeteria.

“Trini is my gay Yoda.”

“I told you to not call me that again.”

“Hey, you came up with it, and I never promised.”

“I hate you.”

“Well, I’ll take it as a practice for when the whole school turns on me.”

“Are you going to be out and proud?” Trini asks, amazed at how easily the other girl is taking everything,

“I’m not going to shout it from the roofs, but if I want to start dating a girl I won’t hide it.”

“Is anyone else feeling like we just entered the Twilight Zone?” This time is Jason the one who asks, staring at both girls as if they’ve just grown four more heads.

“Welcome to the last five days of my life,” Kim says with a resigned tone.

Jason stares at her for a moment and catches the way she’s looking at Trini, and then turns towards the Yellow Ranger and sees the same look reflected in her eyes, and _then_ he seems to realize something that Kim has said earlier.

“Wait…. GIRLFRIEND?!”


End file.
